To provide input on the Incline K-12 principal selection process, email JoEtta Gonzales, area superintendent for Washoe County School District Zone 4, at joegonzales@washoeschools.net.

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Efforts to hire a K-12 administrator for Incline’s public schools are under way, with input being sought on what characteristics and skills residents and parents would like to see in a new leader.

“I really believe that in selecting the best person, we need to have as much input as possible, JoEtta Gonzales, Washoe County School District area superintendent, told about 35 attendees at a community forum Tuesday at Incline High School. “I need to know what you all want.”

The K-12 principal will oversee Incline Elementary, Middle and High schools, helping to improve communication and collaboration among the three campuses in order to provide a seamless curriculum, Gonzales said, with site directors working under the principal.

“(He or she) needs to be really personable because there’s a lot of diverse personalities and fractions,” said Lisa Guzzo, a parent of a middle schooler, after the forum.

For Leslie Wolf, a parent of a middle schooler, she said she would like the K-12 principal to promote high student expectations and make sure instruction is of high quality.

“We really need to make everybody appreciate what the schools can provide and get everybody to persevere, put 110 percent into their schooling and to respect each other in a learning environment,” added Jane Day, a parent of an elementary school student.

Gail L. Krolick, also a parent, would like to see a visionary K-12 principal who is required to live in the community.

“I don’t believe our traditional school system works anymore,” she said. “We’re no longer the bricks and mortar like we used to be ... We’re now very much a technology-based world … (and) I want someone who is open-minded.”

Four internal candidates

Feedback from surveys, which were handed out at Tuesday’s forum, along with input collected from staff, will be used to craft interview questions for candidates, Gonzales said.

Four people, all within WCSD, have applied for the K-12 position, Gonzales said. When asked who those candidates are, she said she couldn’t reveal names, only that all candidates hold a principal position or higher within the district.

An interview panel will be created representing parents, staff members, students and central office people, with interviews scheduled for Tuesday, May 14, at a neutral local site, Gonzales said.

After interviews, each panel member will rank the candidates, with one or possibly two being brought back for a follow-up meeting with district Superintendent Pedro Martinez and/or Deputy Superintendent Traci Davis. The final hire decision will rest with the superintendent, Gonzales said.

“I don’t believe the superintendent has anything invested in making a move in which the community is not supportive of,” she said.

The hope is to hire someone within the next few weeks, Gonzales said, so the candidate can visit school sites; interact with students, faculty and staff; and meet parents and community members before school lets out for summer.

If none of the internal candidates seem to be a good match, time will be taken to open the position up to external candidates, she said.

According to a previous report, Gonzales said the goal is for the district to be cost-neutral in creating the K-12 position.